Car roof seam structure



Oct. 27, 1959 RQTHFUCHS ETAL 2,910,018

CAR ROOF SEAM STRUCTURE Filed July 23, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l .lnveniors 05m ERothf'u ahs & lf'ran cis MHess .Afiorney Oct. 27, 1959 o. E. ROTHFUCHS E 2,910,018

CAR ROOF SEAM STRUCTURE Filed July 25, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inverflors 05w E. Rdhf'uchs & Francis M. Hess .Aiiorney 7 2,910,018 I j Patented: Get. 27;, 19 59 CAR ROOF SEAM STRUCTURE OscarE. l lothfuchs, Michigan City, Ind., and Francis M. Hess, Rlverdale, 111., assignors to Pullman Incorporated, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Application July 23, 1954, Serial No. 445,312.

2 Claims. (31. 108-54).

This invention relates to metal roof constructions, for railway freight cars wherein corrugated, transverse roof sheets having upstanding flanges alongeach side thereof are joined by seam caps to form a flexible weathertight roof.

Due to modern freight transportation methods where increasing emphasis is being placed on speed, of freight movement, the ability of the freight car to withstand the increased strain thereon due to constant vibrations transmitted to all parts of the car must be constantly maintained and improved. With respectto freight. car roofs, it has been found that increased flexibility of the roof structure is necessary if the roof is to; withstand such fatigue stresses. For this reason, one improvementfor roofs related to the change from a flat type of Ioofsheet to one of a corrugated type sheet, thereby increasing the flexibility of the roof as a whole. 1

In addition to having flexibility in the sheets them selves, it has been found that to take maximum, advantage of theflexibility, the seam jointsbetween the sheets should also be of a flexible nature; It is not possible for prior seam joints to be flexible andyet maintain an. eflicient weatherseal between the sheets, for their construction is based entirely upon extreme rigidity. Thus, this invention is directed to the conception of atroof sheet-joint which will serve not only as an improved weathersealing joint but also as a flexible joint for maintaining flexibility throughout the entire roof.

The type of roof in which this invention is embodied comprises a plurality of corrugated roof sheets laid transversely from one side plate to the other side plate. Each roof sheet, except the end sheets, has a flange upstanding from a raised panel along each transversely extending side, the flanges having rivet holes therein. When the roof sheets are in place, their flanges are adjacent each other to form a seam, then to secure the seam for weathersealing purposes, a U-shaped seam cap having rivet holes therein is placed in an inverted manner over the sheet flanges. The rivet holes of the seam cap and sheet flanges are aligned for the insertion and driving of rivets which completes the seam construction, thus forming not only a weatherseal joint but also an outside load carrying member or carline.

It has been found that by constructing the seam joint in such a manner as to form a tension joint, whereby a constant amount of tension exists between the seam cap and the sheet flanges, an improved weatherseal is maintained and that the flexibility of the roof sheets is supplemented, due to the tension joint having the ability to flex or breathe, thereby tempering the constant oblique shock and shear imposed upon the car roof by the car movement.

Thus, theprincipal object of this invention is to provide an improved seam construction for a railwaycar roof having transversely extending, corrugated roof sheets whereby the weathersealing quality of the seam joint is greatly enhanced due to the seam joint being under constant tension.

Another object of this invention is to provide anwim proved seam construction for a type of roof disclosed herein having flexible roof sheets, whereby the seam joint t is capable ofbreathing or flexing'thereby maintaining and supplementing theflexibility of the roof sheets, the seam joint being-under constant tension.

And yet another objectof this inventionis to provide a tension type seam construction for a freight car roof as disclosed herein, whereby thepartsof; theseam joint may be; economically massproduced andapplied to mass pro duced freight cars in amanner; insuring perfect assembly..-

These and: other objects; will become more readily apparent by. reference to the following description and .the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1, is; a fragmentary perspective viewof a roof embodying thepresent inventionwherein a section is, taken through theridge of they roof and wherein the upstanding flanges of adjacent roof sheets are shown in three production stages;

Fig. 2 is a. vertical section similar to one taken along the line 2;--2; inFig. l rbut showing the seam, cap loosely in place over the roof sheet flanges before the wedge pins are inserted;

Fig.3 isa. fragmentary vertical transverse section along line 3-3 in. Fig. 1; and: I

Fig. 4; is a:vertical longitudinal section along theline 4-4211: Fig. 3. andshowing the seam cap and roof'shee flanges riveted together. 1

Referring to the drawings, the invention is shown em bodied in; a freight car. roof. having a plurality of elongated substantially rectangular metal roof sheets. 10 ex-. tending with theirlengths disposed transverse of the roof: from one. side plate 11- tothe other and with the ends thereof secured over the side plates, the side plates 11:. being connected; to outer side sheets 12 and secured to vertical side. posts. 13, to the inner faces of which an inner car lining 14 is fastened. The roof sheet 10 has formed therein a corrugation or raised panel 10a extending longitudinally thereof, and is. higher at the center than atfthe side plate ends.

In Fig. 1, the roof sheet 10 is shown placed side by side-with a similar roof sheet 15v having a. corrugation 15a. similar'to the corrugation 10a, each sheet having a raised marginal portion 16.along a side edge thereof and an upstanding flange 17 extending therefrom, the flange having spaced rivet holes 18 punched therein. A U-shaped seam cap. 19 having flared flanges or base sides 20 on the sides 21 of the cap; bodyand with aligned rivet holes 22 in thebody sides. 21 located in correspond-1 ence to. the spacing of the sheet flange holes 18, is. placed in an inverted manner over the adjacent roof sheet flanges 17;"Whereby the seam cap. flanges or base sides 20 rest on themarginal portions. 16 and the rivet holes 18 and 22 longitudinally aligned, that is, centered. in the same vertical plane transverse of the. seam cap.- and; sheet flanges.

In order to provide an improved weatherseal joint, three features are incorporated into the structure. First, the seam cap base sides 20 are, in the unsecured inverted position of the cap as shown in Fig. 2, depressed a predetermined angle A from the horizontal, in this instance from four to six degrees; second, the marginal portion 16 is also depressed a predetermined angle B from the horizontal, in this instance at least two degrees, so that the slope of the sides 20 is opposite to the slope of the portions 16, and as the flange 17 is at right angles to the portion 16, the flange 17 leans away from the vertical an'angle C, which is equal to angle B; and third, the

rivet holes 18 in the upstanding flanges are so located'that tionships, which should always be maintained irrespective of the of the parts, shows the angles exaggerated for clearness. a

After the seam cap 19 has been placed over the adjacent upstanding flanges 17 (Fig. 2 Wedge pins 22a (Fig. 1) areplaced inthree preselected pinup holes 18a, which have a slightly smaller diameter than the remaining flange rivetholes 18 and which are equal in size'to the seam cap holes 22, th'ewedge pins being inserted in order to perfectly align the remainder of the holes 18 and 22. Once the rivet holes are all aligned, rivets 23 are inserted and driven. The greater size of rivet holes 18 provides tolerance to make drifting or reaming unnecessary. By referring to Fig. 4, it may be noted that the rivet 23 compresses the seam cap side walls 21 and roof sheet flanges 17 so as to apply tension to the free edges of the flanges 17, and also that the marginal portion 16 and the base sides 20-have been vertically deflected so the flanges on the cap being disposed at an angle slightly greater than ninety degrees with the sides of the cap comprising the steps of placing the roof sheets adjacent each other so that the flanges on the sheets contact each other, manipulating the seam cap so that the flanges of the sheets are disposed between the sides of the cap and the free edges of theflanges on the cap contact the protruding portions and so that the centers of the holes in the flanges of the sheets are spaced vertically below the centers of. the holes in the sides of the cap, inserting wedging members in certain of the holes in the flanges of the protruding portions and the sides of the cap and forcing the protruding portions and their flanges toward l the cap and the flanges of the cap toward the protruding as to be locked together under tension, forming an improvedweatherseal joint and also forming a joint which permits a certain amount of flexibility adjacent each side edge of each corrugated roof sheet, the improvement being due to the introduction of tension into the seam joint.

In addition to the improved tension-joint, another feature is provided by the improved construction wherein a further safeguard against the entrance of foreign elements through the joint is available due to the provision of a space for the accumulation of car cement. By having the seam cap body-to-base bend 25 formed on a radius greater than the radius of the portion-to-flange bend 26 of the roof sheet, a trap or space 27 adjacent the base of the flange 17 is obtained after the riveting operation (Fig. 4). By this provision, a ribbon of car cement (not shown), spread adjacent the bend 26 before application of the seam cap, may collect in the space 27 upon the compression of the parts by the riveting operation, thus providing an additional sealing zone behind the sealing area 24. By providing the space 27, contraction and expansion of the metal adjacent thereto will not force car cement to bleed out the rivet joint, as is possible where no accumulation space is provided.

Thus, .it may be seen that by providing a seam joint under tension, a strong, durable, and flexible seam construction is obtained in addition to an improved weathersealing joint. By the provision of such a tension joint, not only will the weathersealing function'of a car roof be enhanced but also the entire roof will be 'more flexible, thus having a longer, more useful and more economical life. 7

What is claimed is:

1. The method of formig a vehicle roof having a pair of roof sheets extending transversely of the roof and a resilient protruding portion along a transverse edge of each roof sheet and each protruding portion being disposed at an angle below the horizontal and an upstanding flange extending from each protruding portion and each flange being provided with spaced holes therein and a U-shaped seam cap having spaced sides provided with spaced holes and resilient flanges on the sides of the cap portions so that the holes in the sides of the cap and in the flanges of the protruding portions are in registry, and placing securing elements in the holes in the sides of the cap and in the flanges of the protruding portions.

2. The method of forming a' car roof having a pair of roof sheets extending transversely of the roof and a resilient raised portion along a transverse edge of each roof sheet and each raised portion being disposed at an angle. below the horizontal and an upstanding flange ex- Y tending from each raised portion and each flange being provided with spaced holes therein and a U-shaped seam cap having spaced sides provided with spaced holes and resilient flanges on the sides and the flanges being disposed at an angle slightly greater than ninety degrees with the sides of the cap comprising the steps of placing the roof sheets adjacent each other so that the flanges contact each other, placing the seam cap in an inverted position and disposing it over the flanges so that the flanges are disposed between the sides of the cap and the free edges of the flanges contact the raised portions and so that the centers of the holes in the flanges are below the centers of the holes in the sides of the cap, inserting wedge pins in certain of the holes in the flanges of the raised portions and the sides of the cap and forcing the raised portions and their flanges upwardly and'the flanges of the cap downwardly so that the holes in the sides of the cap and the flanges of the raised portions are in registry, and placing rivets in the remainder of the' holes in the sides of the cap and the flanges of the raised portions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 108,130 Garry Oct. 11, 1870 1,178,491 Clasen Apr. 11, 1916 1,429,961 Mohun Sept. 26, 1922 1,627,372 Bonsall May 3, 1927 1,984,350 Halsey et a1 Dec. 11, 1934 2,093,756 Gilpin Sept. 21, 1937 2,112,809 Hawksworth Mar. 9, 1938 2,350,213 Bonsall May 30, 1944 2,370,803 Kronenbitter Mar. 6, 1945 Moos Apr. 18, 1950 

